Medieval Indian Literature

8/13/2019 Medieval Indian Literature

1/17

1 0 0 0 1 8 0 0 A . D .

Medieval Indian Literature


2/17

Medieval India

Began with the rise of the Rajputs (warriors mainly fromcentral and northern India) They fought among themselves and

weakened the empire.

Many foreign invaders came and

established kingdoms, bringing with

them different customs and beliefs.


3/17

Medieval Indian Literature

Dominated by Hinduism and Islam

Complex beliefs and traditions due to influx of migration

Development of vibrant language and literature


4/17

Bhakti Movement

bhakti,(devotion, from Sanskritbhaj, to share, tolove), in Hinduism, a movement emphasizing the mutualintense emotional attachment and love of a devotee toward

a personal god and of the god for the devotee

Major trend in medieval Indian literature

Religious devotion to the gods using poetry

Guru Narak, the founder of Sikhism, and Kabir, were keyplayers of the movement

Played a sizeable role in bridging emotional connections toreligion


5/17

Sri Chaitanya

Sri Krishna ChaitanyaMahaprabhu

Vaishnava saint and socialreformer in eastern Indiain the 16th century

Was believed to be the fullincarnation of the Hindu

God Krishna


6/17

Chant the Name of the Lord and his glory unceasingly,That the mirror of the heart may be wiped cleanAnd quenched that mighty forest fire,

Worldly lust, raging furiously within.

- Sri Chaitanya


7/17

Mirabai

Wrote songs to express herlove and devotion toKrishna, almost always as

Krishnas wife

Role model for a religiousmovement emphasizingdevotion and rejecting

traditional divisions


8/17

O my mind,Worship the lotus feet of the Indestructible One!Whatever thou seest twixt earth and sky

Will perish.

- Mirabai


9/17

Medieval Indian Literature in the Mughal Era

Authoritative biographies of rulers in the Mughal Era

Baburnama: Depicts Hindustan with grand prose

Ain-I-Ikbari and Akbarnama by Abul-Fazl were significantbiographies

Numerous regional languages like Hindu, Urdu, Marathi,Bengali, etc.


10/17

Recurrence of Classics in Medieval Indian Literature

New languages weredeveloped, revitalized andrecreated classics such as

Ramayana and Mahabharata Other works like Panchatantra

and other Puranas and mythswere redeveloped

Inter-relation of classic andmodern languages; authorswith knowledge of differentlanguages stood out


11/17

Influences on Medieval Indian Literature

Topography was a significant factor on evolution oflanguages

Impact of nature, landscapes, surroundings and lifeinfluenced Indian literature

Vocabulary and imagery of writers were based ongeographic location


12/17

Influences on Medieval Indian Literature

Aspect of love and war

Conflicts and tensions were widespread, mainly due to thelack of unity of the Indians

Love was the staple theme of many populations, excludingthe love of God, unlike the Bhakti movement

The failure of love, was a better source of inspiration ratherthan the triumph of love


13/17

Expansion of Medieval Indian Literature

First works were sectarian, made to advance or to celebrateparticular unorthodox groups

The Bhakti movement was started with mostly Nayanars(devotees of Shiva) and Alvars (devotees of Vishnu) fromSouth India

The Bhakti movement moved upward spontaneously, andwere centralized on Krishnu and Rama.

The Bhakti movement, for the Hindus and the Muslims,peacefully coexisted wand was popular with the masses


14/17

Philippines India

Migration of the Chinese,Malays and other races fortrade causing adaptationof new works and complexlanguages

Migration of differentpeople to spread religionand change traditions,causing complexlanguages and literature

Similarities of Philippine and Indian Culture


15/17

Philippines India

Traders converted nativeFilipinos into otherreligions of their kind

Migrations dominatedIndia into two mainreligions: Hinduism andIslam



16/17

Philippines India

The conquest of theSpanish helped theFilipinos to do works ofliterature and art, such asSpanish poems, etc.

Many people haveeducated the Indians withliterature and haveinspired the mass with theBhakti Movement



17/17

References

www.poetseers.com

www.historytuition.com

www.ccrtindia.gov.in www.indianetzone.com
http://www.poetseers.com/http://www.historytuition.com/http://www.ccrtindia.gov.in/http://www.indianetzone.com/http://www.indianetzone.com/http://www.ccrtindia.gov.in/http://www.historytuition.com/http://www.poetseers.com/http://www.poetseers.com/

Documents

Medieval Indian Literature